Chapter 95
“I got injured,” Adrian said with a shrug, “so I hired a professional driver.”
The moment Dames saw Adrian, he shrank behind Harrison like a mouse scurrying away from a cat.
The Bellcrest Mountain Race might be an amateur event, but with The Capital Circle’s elite running the show, everything was top–tier–track, prizes, staff, you name it.
The contestants–heirs from the city’s wealthiest families–had spent a fortune over the past year, pouring hundreds of thousands, even millions, into custom–tuning their cars to perfection. Naturally, they weren’t about to trust their pride and joy to anyone less than a pro. Only with a professional behind the wheel did anyone stand a chance of making it into the top three.
For these young scions, winning wasn’t just about the trophy–it was about bragging rights.
Still, they wanted to feel like part of the action, so they’d ride shotgun, acting as co–drivers, shouting out turns and hazards, pretending to have a hand in the victory.
Selene recognized everyone gathered at the foot of Bellcrest Mountain.
But in seven years of marriage to Harrison, she had never once heard that he participated in off–road racing.
The crowd eyed Solarius’s driver with open curiosity.
Felicity spoke up first. “Mr. Shaw, why don’t you have your driver come out and say hello?”
Selene, though, remained in the car, showing no sign whatsoever of getting out.
One of the rich kids called out, “Hey, Mr. Shaw, your driver too good for us? What, we’re not worth her time?”
Adrian laughed dismissively. “Honestly? Luna’s got every right to look down on you lot.”
The moment he said “Luna,” eyes widened all around.
Some people even wondered if they’d misheard.
The racers, spectators, and staff–everyone who’d been chatting and joking–fell
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silent at once.
One by one, they stared at Adrian, then at Solarius, disbelief written across their faces.
“Wait–Mr. Shaw! Who did you say your driver was?”
Adrian’s eyes narrowed, the lashes casting a deep, knowing shadow beneath his lids. “Luna. There’s only one in the world of racing. The Queen of the Night.”
In Roman mythology, Luna was the goddess of the moon; in the world of off–road racing, she was a living legend.
Excitement rippled through the group.
“Unbelievable!” someone cried. “Mr. Shaw, you dropped a fortune on Solarius, and now you’ve got the original owner behind the wheel!”
“No way! Luna’s actually here? I can’t believe I get to race alongside her!”
Dames, bewildered, glanced at the others. “Is Luna really that good?”
Eager to show off, one of the heirs filled him in. “Luna holds the record for the best finish by a female driver from Aldonia in international racing. She came out of nowhere, took every race by storm, and when she drove Solarius, no one could
touch her.”
“I’ve never even heard her name before,” Dames admitted. He loved racing and
followed all the international events.
“She retired before you were born,” the other replied, a hint of regret in his eyes. “If she’d kept going… Well. She was like a shooting star–dazzling, but gone in an
instant.”
“Why did Luna retire?” Dames pressed.
“She went home. Chose family over racing.”
The heir sighed. “A woman’s career is always short–lived. The Luna Racing Club invested everything in her, and now they’re still a cautionary tale in business schools.”
Dames didn’t quite follow all that, but he craned his neck, peering at Solarius, his curiosity about Luna only growing.
“If any of us can beat Luna today, she should have to come out and toast each of us in apology!”
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Chapter 95
Felicity watched her friends, their eyes blazing at the mention of Luna’s name, and her smile grew icier.
In The Capital Circle, Felicity was always the star–every race, all eyes on her. Sure, other female drivers had competed before, but none had ever stolen her thunder. The rare ones who showed real promise either dropped out before the next race or suffered an “accident” before they had a chance.
After all these years, Felicity had become the undisputed queen of their racing
scene.
